(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a water splash preventing apparatus for a vehicle. More particularly, the present invention relates to a water splash preventing apparatus that can improve safety for nearby vehicles by inhibiting water splash from tires in the rain.
(b) Description of the Related Art
Generally, rain water or mud splashed from the tires of trucks driving in the rain can pose a significant safety threat to passenger vehicles or trucks driving nearby.
As shown in FIG. 10 (RELATED ART), trucks typically are equipped with a mudguard 100 and a balance 110 of a vehicle body that primarily block rain water or mud, but these structures are minimum deterrents, that is, they are not enough to stop water from being dispersed into small particles.
In Europe, regulations on apparatuses that can be used to prevent water splashed from tires from impacting other vehicles have been established due to concern about potential damage caused by water splashed by large trucks during the rain. In China, the establishment of similar regulations is underway.
Generally, when large trucks drive on a wet road surface, each tire splashes water in the tangential direction of the respective tire. In this case, as shown in FIG. 10, water hits the mudguard, the balance and the lower part of the vehicle body, becoming a spray form. Thus, the mudguard that surrounds the tire or the flat surface of the vehicle body becomes the cause of water spray. The water spray from tires can be mixed with ground dust, thus tainting the side view minors, disturbing the driver's rear view, and potentially endangering the safety of the driver's own vehicle when changing lanes or overtaking other vehicles. Also, water splashed from the front and rear tires of large trucks blocks the view of passenger vehicles and other trucks located in back of the large truck and puts their safety in danger.
Thus, a water splash preventing apparatus had been designated by regulation in Europe. Such apparatuses are installed on the mudguards or balances to block the splashed water or mud from being dispersed to the outside of a vehicle. For example, as water splashed from tires collides with the water splash preventing apparatus disposed on the inner side of the mudguard, its energy gets reduced, and water and air become separated from each other. The separated water returns to the ground along the inner side of the water splash preventing apparatus without forming a spray. The regulation requires the amount of returned water to be 70% or more of the splashed water. According to multiple tests, it is shown that the application of the water splash preventing apparatus can secure a clear rear viewing angle and a sufficient safety of nearby vehicles.
Korean Patent Application Publication No. 2012-0090217, Korean Patent No. 1996-0015717, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 10-032761, European Patent Application Publication No. 0899185, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 02-256574, and Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 03-128775 disclose various types of water splash preventing apparatuses.
However, conventional water splash preventing apparatuses are not economically feasible due to high cost, and performance may not be as high as desired due to low water recovery rate and insufficient spray inhibition effect.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.